| (AFX UK Focus) 2007-11-18 10:49 GMT: G20 MEETING Mbeki urges substantial reforms of IMF, World Bank
KLEINMOND, South Africa (Thomson Financial) - Thabo Mbeki, the president of South Africa, put his weight behind efforts to reform the IMF and the World Bank substantially. Addressing the G20 finance ministers and central bankers, Mbeki said the world's financial system, laid out in the Breton Woods arrangements after the war, have only served the minority interests of the world's leading economic powers. "For a very long period we have had a multilateral system which in reality has been dominated of the many by the few," he said. The world though, said Mbeki, needs this system to take into account the impact of globalisation, trade and investment openness and the appearance of some fast-growing emerging market economies. Mbeki noted the 19 nations represented, plus the European Central Bank, represent nearly 90 pct of the global economy and two thirds of the world's population and trade, making the G20 the world's "pre-eminent global financial and economic forum".
Undocumented immigrants afraid of using U.S. banks
Stuffed in the bottom of a sock, or between the folds of clean clothes, or in the back of a drawer: There are dozens of places undocumented immigrants find to stash their savings. Surprisingly few of them, however, involve a bank.
There is no regulation that requires proof of legal status to open a bank account in the United States, and an increasing number of small banks are pursuing immigrant and Hispanic customers. Yet finance professionals and immigrant advocates say millions of undocumented men and women still opt to keep their cash on hand, or else wire it home a little at a time, paying for each transaction as they go.
Advocates say the problem largely lies in gaping cultural divides, and fear among the undocumented that bank accounts would make them more visible to authorities.
'Bad' Gophers
I can tell you pretty easily why Iowa's going to crush the Golden Gophers. Come to think of it, I can boil all the many reasons down into two very simple, accurate words: Minnesota's bad.
Real bad.
You know, saying it like that wouldn't be too nice, but it's too late for kind words because the truth hurts, and I have more numbers than a Swiss Bank account to back my bold words.
The Gophers are not only last in the Big Ten in scoring and total defense, they are also last in all of college football in total defense, giving up 548.5 yards per game and are 112th in scoring defense at 37.8 points allowed per game. Minnesota's pass defense and rush defense - which are both bottom in the Big Ten - rank 118th and 115th respectively.
To put it nicely, it's easier to get a first down on the Gophers by running offensive plays than it is to get a fresh set by virtue of receiving the opening kickoff of any given half - Minnesota gives up 25.3 first downs per game.
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LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- A group of Texas Tech alumni has set up a fund to pay the $10,000 fine levied against coach Mike Leach by the Big 12 last week. The conference slapped Leach with its largest fine after the Tech coach condemned the officiating crew in the Red Raiders' 59-43 loss at Texas on Nov. 10. The amount was twice the previous high. The bank account for the "I Like Mike" campaign was opened Friday in Lubbock and the alumni group began promoting it Monday. Within the first hour the account already had a couple hundred dollars, said Brian Mayes, a 1991 Tech graduate who helped set up the campaign. "The initial response has been very, very positive," he said. The eighth-year coach was upset officials disallowed two Tech touchdowns in the third quarter of the Texas game, the first on an overrule after reviewing video that clearly showed the receiver let the ball hit the ground.
In Brief
HOLLISTER - The Community Pantry staff and volunteers are holding a car wash Sat. Nov. 17 at Sunnyslope Medical Center, 930 Sunnyslope Road, from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Funds raised will benefit the Thanksgiving Day baskets.
Foundation holds annual meeting
HOLLISTER - The Baler Education Foundation will hold its annual meeting Monday, Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. at San Benito High School in conference room 132. The meeting is open to the public.
Holte Dinner needs help
HOLLISTER - The Holte Holiday Dinner Committee still needs monetary and food donations for the annual Thanksgiving feast. Food donations of turkeys, potatoes, chicken broth and stuffing mix can be dropped off at Dave Baumgartner's office at 470 Tres Pinos Road in Hollister. Money donations can be sent to San Benito Bank, 300 Tres Pinos Road, care of the Holte Holiday Dinner Account.
Business: Bank secures major account
A SWEDISH bank which has just opened its doors for business in Coventry city centre has secured the business of one of the area's most successful local house builders. Handelsbanken, which moved into its new Coventry office at 6 The Quadrant, beat off competition from the major banks to win the account of rapidly expanding Ian Neale Homes Ltd. The management team at Handelsbanken's Coventry office have excellent career track records with the UK's major banks but believe Handelsbanken with its emphasis on building personal relationships with its customers, will offer a different perspective in commercial banking to the local business community. The Swedish bank already has more than 600 branches worldwide and more than 40 in Britain. Ian Neale will be a customer of the new Handelsbanken Coventry branch.
BCSO arrest two for bank fraud
Investigators with the Bay County Sheriff's Office have arrested two Panama City women and are looking for two others they believe are connected to a fraud case involving two local banking institutions. The women went to two different Panama City banks at different times and each opened a bank account in their names using five dollars, investigators said in a news release. The woman had already stolen checks from two different individuals and once the four accounts had been opened they wrote checks for cash to themselves using the stolen checks. Once the checks had been deposited, the women immediately went to a different branch of the same bank and withdrew the deposit. More than $9,000 was stolen from Innovations and Panhandle Educators Federal Credit Union, said Sheriff's Spokeswoman Ruth Sasser.
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